1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to facilitating sleeping of a person in sitting position.
2. Descriptionxe2x80x94Problem
It is common to see travelers in plane, bus, and automobile, trying to sleep in chairs and seats, with their heads hanging forward or sideways. The Lean makes Sleeping difficult. Even when a person avoids the Lean, it often takes mental effort to do so, which again, makes Sleeping less restful.
There are existing patents intended to improve the sleeping in the sitting position.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,601 by Cowgur describes Rest Pillow, which is inflated and the user wears it, places it on his lap, and rests his head on it. The device would be expensive and inflating is difficult for many.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,231,535 by Mainiero, et al. describes a head support for maintaining erect by wearing a specially curved surfaced device. It supports the head from bending forward. The device has complex curves and does not resist the sideways leans.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,946 by Zuesse shows complicated linkages to keep the head upright by transmitting the forehead pressure to chest. Again, nothing resists the sideway leans.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,523 by Wang describes a safety nap cushion, which requires properly curved inflatable cushion with reverse U-shaped back.
All four devices have two weaknesses. They need to be stored away when not used and they are more complex (expensive) to manufacture. Plus, three of the four devices need to be inflated. Users may need assistance in inflating. It would be very difficult to assist a large number of travelers with inflate-deflate and storage.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,266,825, by Floyd, describes a 2-pc-strap to hold the user""s head against the backrest. Floyd""s invention is very similar to an important part of this invention except, it:
1. uses a 2-piece strap with (loop-hook type) adhesive surfaces,
2. uses non-resilient web only,
3. holds the head in only one position, against the backrest,
4. does not provide body support or head support in a forward leaning position.
Not Applicable. No federally sponsored fund or any other support was used.
This invention is valuable because most chairs do not recline to near horizontal position for sleeping, as in commercials for the business class and the first class air passengers.
The primary objective is to facilitate Sleeping, in the limitation of the chair and the space, by avoiding the Lean. It does it with simple and cost effective Straps and Headrests.
Straps and Headrest prevent the Lean in any one or both of the two ways.
A. Hold the head and/or the body at the backrest
B. Hold the head and/or the body in a forward leaning position.
The strength and the uniqueness of my invention are its low cost, low weight and versatility. Straps provide supports to the head and the body at the backrest and in the forward leaning position. Modified food-trays allow resting of heads, economically, with very little change in design or weight or bulk. My embodiments do not use inflatable or complicated parts. They use simple or proven parts such as straps, pivots, telescopic tubes and existing parts such as food-trays, backrest, Armrests, pillows, and blankets.
In addition, the advantage in cost, weight, volume and maintenance, a vast majority of users would not require any assistance to use Straps and Headrests. Most of the embodiments do not need to be xe2x80x98stored awayxe2x80x99 when not in use. The food-tray can be easily xe2x80x98storedxe2x80x99 as passengers have been doing. Similarly Straps can stay snugly fit to the chair without interfering with the chair""s usage. These strengths make them uniquely suitable in large-scale installations in planes, buses and trains.
The first four inventions in Prior Art may need assistance to inflate and deflate or require storage or maintenance. This would make them unsuitable in large-scale applications because the demands they place on the service personnel. Straps, on the other hand, can be carried in purses and coat pockets. Thus, a user can bring it with him if the vehicle does not provide it.
The 2-piece strap of invention U.S. Pat. No. 6,266,825 by Floyd, with adhesive surfaces, is more complicated to make and to use than my one-piece elastic Head-strap in FIG. 3A. Floyd needs two pieces because xe2x80x98non-resilient materialxe2x80x99 is used for straps. It cannot be stretched to fit over different sizes of backrests and heads. The highly stretchable elastic web in my strap makes the design simpler and it functions better. It allows some head movements while still holding the head against the backrest. Permitting movements make sleeping more restful. A non-resilient strap cannot do so unless it is kept loose. Loose strap, however, tends to slide down and does not function as good. In addition, Floyd""s invention does not support the head in a forwarding leaning position.
The only item that needs storage and simple instructions is Extender, shown in FIG. 20. It facilitates Sleeping even when the backrest is too low and/or for tall users. It thus expands the scope of this invention.
Inventions in Prior Art would appeal to some individuals. This invention has much stronger appeal especially for large-scale applications because of its low cost, ease of use and storage, and versatility. The extreme low weight and volume make it particularly attractive for use in planes.
Additional benefit of the invention is to reduce sound to ears and light to eyes to help in Sleeping.
Another objective of this invention is to improve safety of the Sleeping person in case of sudden change in speed direction by restraining mobility of the user.
All these advantages of my inventions will become more apparent with the ensuing description and the accompanied figures.